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sassypantsreading's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Court of Claws is so good, but oh, how I wish it was written as dual-POV. I NEED to know what Draven is thinking! There are so many little twists in this book that I want his thoughts on. His point of view would just add more fullness to the story. I loved (most of) the new characters that were introduced in this book. Morgan drove me a bit crazy. She was very stubborn and dead set on believing the very worst of Draven at every turn. I didn’t enjoy the way the book ended because I can’t possibly fathom what comes next in the story. Thank goodness I have the next two books ready to go!
I received a copy of Court of Claws for free from NetGalley. Thank you to Briar Boleyn and NetGalley for this copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received a copy of Court of Claws for free from NetGalley. Thank you to Briar Boleyn and NetGalley for this copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Sexual content, and War
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Homophobia, Incest, Infertility, Grief, and Cannibalism
jessdaniellereads's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Homophobia, Grief, and Lesbophobia
milli__'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Thanks to NetGalley and Briar Boleyn for providing me with this book to review :)
Thoughts and Feelings
5 stars
About... Court of Claws is the second book in Blood of a Fae. Morgan our FMC finds herself in a strange place with only her favourite, or hated, morally grey MMC Draven. Does Morgan have what it takes to return to her dear brother or will the intrigue surrounding Draven keep her within the Court of Claws?
What I loved... absolutely everything. I struggled initially with the first book in the series “Queen of Roses“ - however this book had me hooked immediately. I stayed up to 4am reading and finished the book the next day. Draven our morally grey MMC is as usual a walking mystery box with fine abs. The spice in the book heated up significantly compared to the initial book, Briar Boleyn writes many phenomenal scenes that will have readers blushing and wishing they had their own Draven at home.
As the story has developed I find myself more intrigued and eager to get on to the next book. The story is clean with no obvious plot holes or flaws in the story telling.
Draven, I love you.
What I didn't love... I‘ve nothing at all to say about this bit haha. Please make the books longer!
Thoughts and Feelings
5 stars
About... Court of Claws is the second book in Blood of a Fae. Morgan our FMC finds herself in a strange place with only her favourite, or hated, morally grey MMC Draven. Does Morgan have what it takes to return to her dear brother or will the intrigue surrounding Draven keep her within the Court of Claws?
What I loved... absolutely everything. I struggled initially with the first book in the series “Queen of Roses“ - however this book had me hooked immediately. I stayed up to 4am reading and finished the book the next day. Draven our morally grey MMC is as usual a walking mystery box with fine abs. The spice in the book heated up significantly compared to the initial book, Briar Boleyn writes many phenomenal scenes that will have readers blushing and wishing they had their own Draven at home.
As the story has developed I find myself more intrigued and eager to get on to the next book. The story is clean with no obvious plot holes or flaws in the story telling.
Draven, I love you.
What I didn't love... I‘ve nothing at all to say about this bit haha. Please make the books longer!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
lastblossom's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
tl;dr
Fans of the first will probably like this one even more.
Thoughts
In my review of the previous installment in this series, I mentioned that it was already a bit too dark for my tastes. Well, it's gotten darker. That makes my personal opinion pretty clear, so I'll keep this brief. If you liked the first book and you want something with more twists, more action, and more SPICE, then come on in! I also lamented that Morgan didn't seem to push back much in the first book. She pushes back a lot more now, but maybe... too much? Perhaps her Goldilocks moment will come in the third installment where she'll push back the exact right amount. With a cliffhanger like that, I certainly hope so.
Thanks to NetGalley and Starwater Press for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Fans of the first will probably like this one even more.
Thoughts
In my review of the previous installment in this series, I mentioned that it was already a bit too dark for my tastes. Well, it's gotten darker. That makes my personal opinion pretty clear, so I'll keep this brief. If you liked the first book and you want something with more twists, more action, and more SPICE, then come on in! I also lamented that Morgan didn't seem to push back much in the first book. She pushes back a lot more now, but maybe... too much? Perhaps her Goldilocks moment will come in the third installment where she'll push back the exact right amount. With a cliffhanger like that, I certainly hope so.
Thanks to NetGalley and Starwater Press for a review copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Physical abuse, Violence, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Alcohol
anapthine's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Thank you NetGalley and Starwater Press for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Often with sequels or the second book of a series, it is never as good as the original. However, this second instalment of the Blood of a Fae series is so much better. I cannot put into words how addicted I was to the plot. The twists and turns were often unpredictable, and I loved the new characters with their own backstories. This was an incredibly well written addition to Queen of Roses.
We once again follow Morgan, after the events of the betrayal and deaths of Queen of Roses, where she deals with her grief and still is determined to save her little brother who is trapped under King Arthur’s reign and command. Surrounded by lies and the still a stranger Draven, she is forced to adjust in the court of Siabra, almost a lifetime away from her home.
Oh my word, the ending I was not expecting and made me frustrated that the Empress of Fae (#3) could not come any sooner - I am so excited to read it.
My favourite line from this book was: “Morally grey asshole.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Homophobia
booksalacarte's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Court of Claws- 3.5⭐️ 3🌶️
Betrayal
Fake relationship
Morally grey MMC
He Falls First
One bed
Surprise twist
Kingdom politics
Found family
Trials
War
Animal familiars
Miscommunication
🏳️🌈 Side Character Rep
This story begins right where the first left off. I really like how this reimagined Camelot is pulling more and more from the original. Links are being revealed and coming together. All of the little pieces of the original story finding their way into this one, just with a spin. It’s refreshing and highlights taking a misogynistic tale and restructuring it to not be so archaic.
The writing is a little stilted, it felt like the word “F*ck” was added in excessively (mostly by one character) to make things edgier… sometimes it was in juxtaposition to the story creating a jarring harshness of language in situations where you would expect more finesse. And I’m not talking about the bedroom scenes… those were good!
Anyway, it wasn’t off putting enough that I didn’t enjoy the book. Far more than the first, mainly because of the non-stop action and fast pace plot.
Morgan is an infuriating character. It’s almost like she is completely ignorant of court politics or intrigue. (Reminder, she was raised as a princess!) She only sees things in black and white. She is full of flaws; immature, annoyingly defiant for terrible reasons, stubborn, wishy-washy as hell, and seemingly purposefully and idiotically obtuse. Her character arc isn’t evident yet… hopefully she will grow in the next book… and says “f*ck” in more appropriate instances, instead of throwing it around because her character needs to be more daring and grown up… She just sounds like a middle schooler on a playground trying to show how badass she is by saying the worst curse word she can think of.
Draven seems to be an enigma with his loyalty and willingness to do what has to be done. Talk about the definition of “Morally Grey”. A softie with a hard exterior. Exactly what a morally grey man should be. He has killed, been exiled, caught for Morgan and himself, sacrificed himself and his kingdom. I think he is well written… as well written as any other fantasy romance MMC. They all have flaws.
The exmoors are so cool! I’m a sucker for animal familiars. If something happens to them I’ll riot.
The side characters are endearing. I’m undecided if I can get past Morgan’s poor character arc enough to read on… if I do, it’s only for Draven and the exmoors.
Thank you NetGalley and Starwater Press for the advanced reader copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Betrayal
Fake relationship
Morally grey MMC
He Falls First
One bed
Surprise twist
Kingdom politics
Found family
Trials
War
Animal familiars
Miscommunication
🏳️🌈 Side Character Rep
This story begins right where the first left off. I really like how this reimagined Camelot is pulling more and more from the original. Links are being revealed and coming together. All of the little pieces of the original story finding their way into this one, just with a spin. It’s refreshing and highlights taking a misogynistic tale and restructuring it to not be so archaic.
The writing is a little stilted, it felt like the word “F*ck” was added in excessively (mostly by one character) to make things edgier… sometimes it was in juxtaposition to the story creating a jarring harshness of language in situations where you would expect more finesse. And I’m not talking about the bedroom scenes… those were good!
Anyway, it wasn’t off putting enough that I didn’t enjoy the book. Far more than the first, mainly because of the non-stop action and fast pace plot.
Morgan is an infuriating character. It’s almost like she is completely ignorant of court politics or intrigue. (Reminder, she was raised as a princess!) She only sees things in black and white. She is full of flaws; immature, annoyingly defiant for terrible reasons, stubborn, wishy-washy as hell, and seemingly purposefully and idiotically obtuse. Her character arc isn’t evident yet… hopefully she will grow in the next book… and says “f*ck” in more appropriate instances, instead of throwing it around because her character needs to be more daring and grown up… She just sounds like a middle schooler on a playground trying to show how badass she is by saying the worst curse word she can think of.
Draven seems to be an enigma with his loyalty and willingness to do what has to be done. Talk about the definition of “Morally Grey”. A softie with a hard exterior. Exactly what a morally grey man should be. He has killed, been exiled, caught for Morgan and himself, sacrificed himself and his kingdom. I think he is well written… as well written as any other fantasy romance MMC. They all have flaws.
The exmoors are so cool! I’m a sucker for animal familiars. If something happens to them I’ll riot.
The side characters are endearing. I’m undecided if I can get past Morgan’s poor character arc enough to read on… if I do, it’s only for Draven and the exmoors.
Thank you NetGalley and Starwater Press for the advanced reader copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism